Fender guard



Feb. 7,1939.

G. E. BLENDERMAN FENDER GUARD Filed Nov. 5, 1937 meg Patented Feb. 7, 1 939 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 3 Claims.

My invention relates to the general class of automobile accessories and particularly to guards for the protection of the head lamp lenses, and the paint and finish of the bodies of automobiles.

5 It is the object of my invention to provide an eflicient and inexpensive guard made primarily of foraminous material and having means enabling it to be readily attached and adjusted to all types and sizes of automobile bumpers and the arms thereof.

The problem to which my invention offers an efiective and satisfactory solution relates especially to the fact that there has been a marked tendency in recent times toward driving automobiles at high speeds upon the highways including graveled roadways. The fast driving of vehicles upon graveled highways is entirely practicable. However, the tires of the rapidly moving vehicle compress the gravel upon the roadway 2c and during revoluble movements of the wheels said gravel is cast rearwardly and forcefully and often sufiiciently to break the lenses of a second automobile following behind the first automobile, and at times when one automobile is steered 5 around a preceding automobile upon a graveled highway, the preceding automobile casts gravel upon the approaching vehicle with an impetus sufiicient to mar the paint and varnish of the forward portions of the passing automobile, cs-

pecially when said passing is repeated as is necessary during the use of a vehicle for an extended period. To facilitate the control of the undesirable prior practices the guard used for protection of the approachingvehicle need be of relatively light weight and the area thereof need not be extensive since the guard is mounted vertically on the bumper of the approaching vehicle and disposed substantially at a right angle with respect to gravel and stones cast rearwardly by the preceding vehicle while having, of course,

sufficient strength to resist crushing or deformation. For convenience of handling during transportation and prior to application upon a motor vehicle, it is also desirable that the guard be of such construction that it may be folded compactly for packaging and shipment, or where shipment thereof is made to a common destination a plurality of the guards may be secured together to form a single package and be handled as a a t I The above mentioned qualifications are all embodied in the guards constructed in accordance with my invention and illustrated in the accompanying drawing in which:

Figure 1 is a front elevation of a portion of a motor vehicle having an embodiment of my invention applied thereto.

Figure 2 is a top plan view thereof.

Figure 3 is a transverse section on line 33 5 of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is an enlarged detail of a fragment of the guard.

Figure 5 is a front elevation of an auxiliary guard part which may be employed. )0

Figure 6 is a top plan view of the guard shown in Figure 5.

In the preferred embodiment of my invention the guard is made primarily of heavy screen material having a mesh fine enough to prevent the passage of such gravel and debris therethrough which is of large enough size to injure the finish of a vehicle. The device includes two outwardly and oppositely disposed portions of like construction comprising the vertically dis- 20 posed guards i0 and H, the edges of the wire screens thereof, as shown in Figure 4, being inserted in frames 12. The frames l2 are U- shaped in cross section and compressed snugly upon the screens and spot welded as at l3 (Fig- 25 ure 4) whereby a comparatively rigid, lightweight structure is provided. The lower edges of the frames l2 are secured by any suitable means to their respective supports l4 and IS, the latter each havin a plurality of selective 30 apertures 16 at their inner ends as shown in Figure 2, whereby bolts or similar suitable keepers I i may be inserted through the apertures for joining the guards l0 and H together and in accordance with the transverse width of the vehicle, said guards being mounted between the fenders l8 of the vehicle and the bumper I9, being preferably secured upon the upper edges of the bumper supporting arms 20. The supports I4 and i5 provide a preferred two piece construction for the purpose above mentioned and may consist of a single supporting bar of predetermined, selected length in instances where the device is manufactured to fit the particular transverse width of a certain make of vehicle. As best shown in Figure 3, preferably U-bolts 2| are employed which substantially encircle the bumper arms 20 and extend through the members l4 and [5, being secured by means 50 of nuts and lock washers 22, whereby the supports l4 and 15 are rigidly secured to respective bumper supporting arms 20.

The inner vertical edges 23 of the guards are each provided with a wing 24 which is pivotally 55 2 and hingedly secured to said edges as shown in Figure 1, said wings 24 being maintained in selected positions by means of the links 25, said links being pivotally attached to the inner edges of the wings and extended towards their respective supports l4 and i5.

The supports 14 and I5 are provided with further selective apertures 26 for receiving bolts 21 therethrough, the latter extending also through the links 25 whereby the wings are rigidly maintained in a selected position. The

, wings 24 are adjusted horizontally in accordance with the width of the radiator grill 2B of the vehicle, whereby not only the forward portions but also the sides of the fenders are protected against gravel cast by a preceding vehicle.

The modern types of vehicles are provided with grills 26 and certain of said modern types do not have their grills 26 extended downwardly to the base of the radiators, but do extend to approximately one foot from the bottom of said radiators and from the lower edge of said shorter grills and outwardly towards the bumper and terminating in alignment with the side fenders and between the latter the space is filled in with sheet metal which is finished and is of the same color as the fenders. With this latter mentioned type of vehicle the shield 28, shown in Figure 5,

y is employed, said shield being secured, by any be obvious that a guard for automobiles constructed in accordance with my invention is particularly well adapted for use by reason of the convenience and facility with which it may be assembled and operated, and it will also be obvious that my invention is susceptible of some change and modification without departing from saidframe to a bumper arm of said vehicle forwardly of a fender, a wing guard portion pivotally attached to said frame, and a link secured to said wing and frame for maintaining said wing at a selected angle with respect to said frame and at one side of said fender for protecting the latter.

2. A guard for the front fenders of a vehicle having a bumper comprising a pair of oppositely disposed frames, portions of said frames over: lapping each other and provided with selective apertures and keepers extending therethrough for locking said frames together in spaced apart 7 relation in accordance with the Width of said vehicle, clamps for securing said frames to the supporting arms of said bumper, sheets of foraminous material within each frame, a wing guard portion pivotally secured to each' frame, a link secured to each wing and the supporting frame thereof for maintaining said wings at a selected angle with respect to their respective frames; at

the inner sides of said fenders for protecting the latter. v v

3. In a guard for the fenders of a motor vehicle having a bumper, a pair of oppositely disposed spaced apart frames, a sheet of foraminous mao terial carried by each of the said frames, a bar adapted to be disposed transversely with respect to an end of said vehicle for'supporting said frames, and clamp means for securing said bar to the supporting arms of said bumper for maintaining said frames and said spaced apart material vertically between said bumper. and said fenders for protecting the fenders.

GORDON E. BLENDERMAN. 

